Security has been considered a relatively-high concern for a number of recent years. Of particular interest is security afforded to checkpoints, such as border crossings, airport security checkpoints, sensitive building entrances, etc. While it is desirable to provide very thorough security, there is a balance between the security afforded and the comprehensive costs associated therewith. There are a few main costs for providing security at such checkpoints: manpower, efficiency, and, as a result, use.
In order to understand the threat that a person poses, the person can be searched in an attempt to identify the threat, or the person can be interviewed. This latter option is generally more rapid and less invasive, leading to a lower level of dissatisfaction in users/customers. Security staff at security checkpoints is trained to identify possible deception based on visual cues and audio cues. A person, however, can condition themselves to reduce the human-perceptible signs of deception, such as twitches, fidgeting, wavering in the voice, a break in eye contact, etc. As a result, while staff training can lead to the detection of some deception, it is unlikely to lead to the detection of deception for more egregious cases.
The detection of deception and hidden emotions generally is of interest in other circumstances, such as during the interrogation of a suspect or a potential witness of a crime, or the surveillance of a person of interest. In such cases, it can be helpful to identify hidden or otherwise obscured emotions that can provide insight into the veracity of answers provided, the anxiousness/discomfort of a person, etc.